Mothers who have had water births- What are the pros and cons for water birth?
ByI am not expecting or anything but I’ve come across some confusing articles about water births and birthing pools.
I have read that babies that are born in water are more apt to be extremely Intelligent and be able to hold their breath longer under water and basicallyly pick up swimming easier. I have also read that it is very relaxing for both mother and child. Is this true?
what confuses me is that I have also read that water births are dangerous for the baby (If there was going to be any risks to the baby most parents would change their minds anyway or at least their doctors would make the decision for them) and basically that mothers who choose to have such births are “selfish”. This counteracts the article about how helpful it is to the baby’s mind and comfort. I understand that a conformable baby is a healthy baby so how would this be “selfish”? I also know that most mothers-to-be loose all bodily functions during birth… so wouldn’t the baby be in her mess?
I want to know your experience with water births and the pros&cons of the idea, please.
I just can’t get this question out of my mind since I read the articles so I guess I “need” to know… sorry… Thank You for feeding my curiosity… and clearing my mind of silly questions that have nothing to do with me… yet…
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3 Comments
May 16th, 2010 at 5:42 am
I haven’t had one but I’ve researched water birth to the core. I’m very interested in home birth, specifically home water birth.
-First off, the whole “increased intelligence” and “hold breath longer thing” sounds extremely, extremely made up.
-But some benefits of water birth are:
-decreased risk of tearing, as well as decreased pain
-a more relaxing birth, and a way to support your huge belly
-a better environment for the baby to enter upon birth (the water mimicks the amniotic fluid).
There’s a lot of people out there who don’t have the facts about water birth, or home birth, etc……and as a result they say stupid things like “it’s selfish/unsafe.” Well, it’s not. Good luck.
May 16th, 2010 at 6:06 am
The stuff about the extremely intelligent and able to hold their breath longer is just made up. No reason for them to be able to swim easier. It is much more relaxing for mother and child.
Why is it everything that veers from the ‘norm’ is called selfish? Nonsense. If there are concerns, the mother gets out of the tub. Not that tough. Some women intend to have water births end up with ‘land’ births because things aren’t going exactly as planned and that’s what is great about it.
I didn’t and won’t be having a water birth, so sorry, can’t give you particulars. However, my hospital permits water births and even have 2 rooms for it.
May 16th, 2010 at 6:53 am
Having a water birth was a very special experience for me. The relaxing non hospital environment made it easier for me and my husband to bond and it not be so stressful for me. I think that having the home / water birth with my more then 9 lb baby boy helped relieve some of the pressure.
The warm water soothed the pain of the contractions a lot and it was more like pressure and tightening then a shooting pain. It was absolutely amazing. After getting in the water he was born in 2 hours, not once did I feel the need for any other form of pain relief. Baby was so calm, no crying, he just looked around wide eyed taking everything in.
The contractions were not painful, but they were such a different feeling that the only urge I had was to be vocal – very vocal.
We got to the birth center at 3:30am. We got upstairs just as another contraction started. I was asked if I wanted them to check and see how far along I was and for the first time during my pregnancy had a short vaginal exam. I was told that I was at seven centimeters. I was so scared that I was at one or two that when they said “seven” and they were joking with me. I was told that just because I was seven centimeters didn’t mean it was going to go fast, so it could still take awhile. I told them, ” I know but I don’t think it’s going to be very long”.
2 hours later I was holding him in my arms.
There is no harm to the baby – babies were born at home for many centuries before hospitals came into play. If you remember they only start breathing when they hit the air so they can almost breath under water (doesn’t mean you can keep them submerged for hours though). When they lose their bodily functions the nurses will scoop out the poo before it even has time to mess the pool. It’s perfectly healthy – all my babies were more then 6 pounds and completely healthy.